39-year-old electric car speed record broken

Drayson Racing, led by former British science minister and avid racer Lord Paul Drayson, set a new record yesterday using an electric version of a race car originally developed for the American Le Mans Series.

Using its B12 69/EV Le Mans prototype, Drayson Racing managed to set the land speed record for an electric race car in the FIA's sub-1000 kilogram (2,200 pounds) category, with a final top speed of 204.185 mph.

The speed beats the previous record of 175 mph was set by Battery Box General Electric back in 1974.

Note, the world land speed record for an electric car was set by French firm Venturi in 2010 and stands at 307.7 mph. Drayson Racing’s record is for an FIA-sanctioned vehicle.

Behind the wheel of the electric Le Mans prototype was Drayson himself, who after the run explained that the outright speed was not the most impressive feat of this record but the engineering challenge of accelerating a 1000-kilogram electric car on a short runway over a measured mile.

Drayson said he plans to attempt even more records today. One of these will be a record for electric car acceleration.